“We have to get you gussied up and find you a new man tonight.” Luhan announced after I told him what had happened with Chanyeol earlier. I rolled my eyes and just followed him out as his urging. He ended up dragging me back home a while later, whining since he couldn't get me into anything more suggestive than skinny jeans and a button-down. We'd returned with a bag full of groceries since it now seemed I would be making the cookies at Luhan's apartment rather than my own.

 

He insisted that I let him do something with the mess on my head, and proceeded to do so without really receiving permission. It was almost funny to me how Luhan's touch wasn't half as repulsive to my skin as my boyfriend's was. Half an hour later, he finally let me go so that I could go make the cookies, with only an hour left until people were supposed to start showing up.

 

Cookies weren't anything special, chocolate chip with Luhan constantly trying to sneak bits of the dough. I managed to get a couple dozen actually cooked, no thanks to my friend, and I was a bit more calm after. My phone went off in my pocket and I pulled it out, glancing down at the message from Chanyeol.

 

I'm sorry about this morning, Soo.

 

I ignored it with a sigh and silenced the damn thing before putting it back in my pocket, heading out into the living room where Luhan was greeting the first to show up, ten minutes early. His name was Wufan, and his partner, Baekhyun, was busy studying tonight and decided not to come. Arriving next was a pair, best friends Yixing and Zitao. They both had yet to find their partners, if the time left on their clocks was anything to go by. After that, Junmyeon, Jongdae, and Minseok arrived as a mass. Jongdae and Junmyeon were cousins, and Minseok was Junmyeon's boyfriend. Jongdae was one of those rare ones whose clocks wouldn't move but he still didn't get it taken off. I started to wonder if Luhan only had gay friends.

 

We'd all sat down to talk, Junmyeon and Minseok sharing a recliner with Jongdae sitting at their feet, Wufan, Yixing, Zitao, and Luhan lounging on the couch, and me curled up on one half of the loveseat. We'd just gotten to talking (read: watching Wufan and Luhan arguing about which shade of blonde looked best) when Sehun and a boy I'd never met walked in the room.

 

Sehun was saying some excuse about why they were a bit late, but all I could hear was one single, drawn out beep as the one who'd come in with Sehun looked up and met my eyes. 

 

There was a collective silence in the room before confusion broke out. I could feel everyone's eyes on me. There weren't two beeps heard, which meant that the one this stranger found must not have had a clock. I was the only person in the room without one. I felt my stomach flip, felt the rushing in my ears, and before I could process what was happening, Luhan was up and leading the stranger to sit beside me. He seemed just as stunned as I was.

 

Conversation was slowly picked back up, but this stranger and I remained in our own world. I could have easily drowned in the depths of warm, brown eyes and I could have run my fingers through that mop of dark hair all day, but I didn't let myself. I can't say how long we sat there for. The buzz of conversation around me dulled down.

 

He still looked rather uncertain, though, and when he spoke, his voice was soft so that only we could hear it. “I didn't hear yours, did it...” He trailed off as he looked down, picking up my wrist when he didn't see a clock on it, then picking the other up just to check. “You don't...?” He looked lost and confused. Words will still beyond me, so I just shook my head. 

 

There was a stigma against those my age without clocks, that we were ignorant and not looking for love, that we hated the concept and would turn anyone we may meet away in favor of choosing our own path no matter how happy it made us. I could see that in his eyes now, the worry that I would turn him away because I didn't want that.

 

I still had doubt in my mind, though. How had this happened? I didn't have a watch, I wasn't supposed to find the person for me. Maybe it was Jongdae, maybe his clock was just malfunctioning instead of being stopped. I had Chanyeol, that was enough...right? It wasn't supposed to be like this. Yet I couldn't hold down the thrill that when through me when I realized that yes...it was like this.

 

“My name's Jongin.” I could listen to him talk all day. But I knew it was wrong of me to think this way. I knew that it was unfair to Chanyeol to be thinking of someone else like this.

 

“I'm--”

 

“Do Kyungsoo! I know you're there! I know you're ignoring me!” Banging started up on the door, and Luhan was up in moments, flinging the door open and shoving Chanyeol back. They started yelling back and forth, Luhan angry about Chanyeol's treatment of me earlier and Chanyeol repeating that it wasn't any of Luhan's business. Eventually, Luhan was shoved out of the way and so was an angry Sehun. Chanyeol's eyes found me there on the loveseat with Jongin, narrowing when he saw--

 

Oh, no. Jongin had never let go of my wrists, and I'd never thought to detach myself from him since the touch hadn't made my skin crawl. Chanyeol stormed over and grabbed me by the arm, dragging me up, and heading for the door, and in my head, I silently prayed for Jongin not to--

 

“Put him down!” I heard. I clenched my eyes shut. No, Jongin, he'll get angry, I tried to reason with the boy in my head, but obviously that wouldn't work. “Who are you, just coming in here and grabbing him like that?”

 

Chanyeol laughed. “Stupid. I'm his boyfriend.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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